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Sorry for the technical title, I don't consider this music too technical, that's why I'm keeping it's original name in the file. However for the sake of sharing, this is more of an exercise. Lately I've been upset about the lack of modulations in my music, and so I decided to go to the edge of what I can write, so I could get more comfortable writing in this harmonic style. I generally prefer diatonic music, but love key changes, and would like to improve on making strong moments when keys are changing. This piece is generally in a a very easily felt tone center but there are moments, like page 6, which the motif keep reappearing in different tonal centers, forcing the music to adjust with it. This isn't my best music, the orchestration is fine, and it's not really refined or complex, but this was an important step for me.

hi been working on this piece for a month now, almost straight after "Your Reality," and around the release of Deltarune's Chapter 3+4. i was super inspired by the new osts so i decided to make a "theme and variations" piece from one of them. you could see it as the next step in my "actually learning orchestration journey," after making an arrangement, i guess this time (unlike the previous variations piece), i've divided the variations into three parts. the piece is halfway done in DAW, so i've started to make the score. also, when i do so, i usually polish and look for parts that I can optimize at the same time. the score currently contains only the introduction and the theme since that's the only progress that I've made with scoring. instrumentation : 3(III=pic).3(III=corA).3(III=bc).2 - 4.3.3.1 - timp.perc:glsp/xyl/2toms/sus.cymb/cyms/tgl/tamb - strings lemme know what ya think and feedbacks are always appreciated! OST:

I finally present to you a movement from my big variations project that I've had brewing since early 2024! Emboldened by the success of my "Deck the Halls" Variations I sought out more popular themes that I could write variations on. Originally I only intended to write variations on the Returner's March, but it soon grew out of all proportion when I started noticing all the little motivic relations between different themes so I had to include more. This is meant as a hybrid variations fantasy, medley, and mash-up of the themes that you can listen to here: The original themes were written by the great Nobuo Uematsu so my variations retain a certain Japanese flavor. In fact the first half of this Scherzo is subtitled "Asiatic". The Scherzo proper doesn't start until 6:01. I welcome any of your suggestions, critiques, comments or just observations. Thanks for listening and I hope you enjoy! P.S.: I'd like to thank my friends @chopin, @Henry Ng Tsz Kiu, @Thatguy v2.0 and @gaspard for their time, advice, and support throughout the composition process!

Love this Peter! Your intricate orchestration has been carefully woven into a mesmerising tapestry. Must've taken a lot of effort to write! I was especially interested, having used Uematsu as an inspiration for one of my own recent piano works. But this is a far more ambitious project.

Man the woodwinds writing on this is insane, heck I think the woodwinds are the spotlight of this movement (and the horns too). You've managed to really use all of the family's characteristics to their fullest. Love the canon woodwinds-only section on b.42 for contrast, followed immediately by another color contrast on b.58 by the string quartet and the horn for pedal tones. It's really dense with the variety of themes playing counter-points with each other. The harmonies are so colorful, also really like the transitions between the variations. Random things I've noticed: brass fanfare interruptions on b.228 are from the beginning (b.17), the upward fourths figure from the cellos on b.72 gets a lot of variations after this as foreground (starting b.89), middleground (tremolo strings from b.101), background (b.97), and cadence (b.86 violins, b.126-127 clarinets and oboes, b.135 strings, b.142-145 strings), figure from b.81 by string and oboes gets variated on b.166 (love this section) and b.258, the arpeggiated power chord figure on the harp gets used a lot until the end. Overall, I really like it. Thanks for recommending me your piece! This really motivates and inspires me to continue my own symphonic variation.

The new ninja gaiden game's music is some of the best game music I've heard since the 2000s.

Hi @ferrum.wav! I listened to the original track and your first variation immediately afterward. They do transition into each other very smoothly! I think making small changes to each successive variation is going to be the best way to eventually make the piece sound more and more different from the original (but still audibly related) as possible. That's what I always find most exciting about variation form is that it successively sounds more and more different and further removed from the original and brings a surprising sense of variety despite still being audibly connected to the original theme. Thanks for sharing and good luck on your successive variations! P.S.: I've also recently finished a movement of a giant variations piece. Check it out if you have a chance!

Hi @Some Guy That writes Music! I think writing music that modulates from the get-go without first establishing a tonic key in the main theme is difficult. But you do somehow manage to achieve this with the help of sometimes repeating a musical gesture again to solidify the feeling that, yes, you did mean to do that. Wagner was the composer in music history that was known for the "art of transition" right? I like how the piece builds tension, momentum and dissonance towards the end. But I do feel like the piece just stops and could easily be continued. Cool piece! Thanks for sharing. P.S.: Don't forget to acknowledge the people who have taken the time to review your music by giving them (myself included LoL) a ❤️ or a 🏆!

Hi @林家興! What a surprising and accessible sound you create with the slightly swung 16th notes! This soon gives way to a B section that's very jazzy. I really like the slow retransition back to the main material with an accelerando at the end. It's very easy to listen to and understand and you capture this listener's heart with the sparkling and twinkling high piano notes that are like glistening icicles. You display quite a lot of craft in this short and (somewhat) simple little piece. I can't keep myself from listening to this over and over. Thanks for sharing!

Hi @Fugax Contrapunctus! Very cool idea! I actually do something like this harmonically speaking in my Variations on "Deck the Halls" for Piano and Orchestra. I cycle through the whole circle of 5ths twice over before returning back to the home key, although it's not a canon. Very effective orchestration here, starting with just strings, adding woodwinds and then introducing the choir - very multi-dimensional approach to a simple repeating canonic structure. Thanks for sharing!

VARIATION 1. I try to maintain the lightness of the theme's orchestration while adding varieties to the theme. the bit at the end is the transition to the 2nd variation, more dance-like i guess.